To-Do List Formula: A Stress-Free Guide To Creating To-Do Lists That Work!

by Damon Zahariades

Reason #8: Your Tasks Are Not Attached To Specific Goals

Everything you do has a purpose. For example, you change the oil in your car to keep the engine in good shape. You file your income taxes on time to avoid penalties and fines. You make a reservation at your favorite restaurant to avoid having to wait 45 minutes for a table. Our goals spur us to take action. We’re less inclined to procrastinate when we’re able to predict the positive result of completing a specific task.

The point is that you must attach a specific goal to each task on your to-do list. Know the reason each item needs to be completed. If you neglect this step, you’ll be less motivated to get the item done.

You may relate to this from experience. If so, don’t despair. I promised to show you how to create to-do lists that spur you to take action, help you to work more efficiently, and increase your productivity.

How Negative Emotions Impair Your Productivity

It’s important to recognize the impact our emotions have on our productivity. When we’re unhappy, stressed, or fearful, our productivity suffers. We feel disengaged from our work, regardless of its role in achieving our goals. We’re also less creative and have more difficulty making decisions. Moreover, we lose focus and become more easily distracted. Consequently, we get less done.

So if you’re having trouble staying productive during the workday, take stock of your emotional state. Are you struggling with feelings that are siphoning your motivation? Are you dealing with emotions that are having a toxic effect on your willpower? Is persistent negativity eroding your focus and causing you to be more easily distracted?

Once you’ve identified whatever is triggering your negativity, you can take steps to change your circumstances and relieve the pressure.

Part II 10 Most Popular To-Do List Systems

The purpose of this section isn’t to highlight the best system. Rather, it’s to give you a bird’s-eye view of several systems so you can identify specific features that resonate with you. This section will come in handy when we design a to-do list system that supports your workflow process. You’ll be able to integrate your favorite features from other systems to build one that’s perfectly-suited to you.

#1 - The Massive, All-Inclusive List

There’s nothing elegant about this strategy. It is essentially a brain dump. You write down every task you can think of onto a single list. You can already see the problems inherent in this approach. First, your list will grow too long. If you’re dumping new tasks onto it each day, there’s little chance you’ll ever get through it.

Second, you’ll have too many options. This will impair your decision-making ability. Presented with a long list of choices, you’re more likely to become paralyzed with indecision than you are to take action. Third, your list will have too much variability. Three-minute tasks will be listed next to three-hour tasks. Low-priority tasks will be listed next to high-priority tasks. You’ll end up spending time on items that don’t warrant your immediate attention. There are other problems with the “massive, all-inclusive” list approach to task management. But at this point, you get the idea. This strategy leaves a lot to be desired. It’s worth pointing out that doing a brain dump is an important step toward creating an effective to-do list. But it’s a first step. After you’ve written down all of the tasks you can think of, you need to organize them according to their importance, priority, context, and other elements.

This approach is popular. But its popularity isn’t due to its effectiveness. Far from it. It’s due to the lack of training most people receive regarding how to properly design a solid task management system.

#2 - The “Task + Starting Date + Due Date” List

The appeal of this format is its simplicity. It also introduces one of the most important elements of a proper task management system: deadlines.

This approach to creating to-do lists also introduces a second crucial feature: starting dates. Rather than leaving you with a long list of tasks and their respective due dates, it also provides the dates on which you should begin working on the tasks. This feature is more useful than it might seem. It delivers two important benefits. First, it allows you to focus on a smaller number of to-do items. You can devote your attention to tasks that are in progress or need to be started that day. You can ignore those that have starting dates in the future.

This to-do list system is imperfect in many ways. In fact, it has major flaws.

#3 - The To-Do List Twosome: Master Task List + Daily Task List

This approach is the one-two punch of to-do list creation. It involves keeping two distinct lists: your master list and your daily list. As with the two previous systems we profiled, it leaves a lot to be desired. However, the fact that it makes a distinction between your “brain dump” list and your daily list makes it worthy of mention.

Your master list is a rolling repository of every task you think of. It’s where you record every item, regardless of its priority, deadline, the time required to complete it, and the project with which it’s associated.

You’ll never get through your master list. In fact, it will probably grow with time. That’s fine, according to folks who use this system. The purpose of this list is to capture the myriad tasks swimming around in your head, saving you the effort of having to remember them.

Here’s how the two lists work together: Each evening, you would review your master list. You’d look for tasks due in the near future or those that need to be addressed in order to move other tasks forward. Once you identify these to-do items, you’d choose several and transfer them to the following day’s daily list, assuming your schedule allows adequate time to address them. Alternatively, you might review your master list every few days rather than nightly. This would entail planning your daily to-do lists a few days in advance. This approach to task management can be effective. The key is that each task is assigned a deadline, along with notes detailing its priority, context, and the time required to complete it.

#4 - The "3+2" Strategy

This to-do list system follows a simple formula: three big tasks and two small tasks.

Each day, you select the five items you’ll work on. (Or better yet, select them the night before.) The big items should take between one and two hours to complete. The small items should take 30 minutes or less.

This feature of the “3+2” strategy makes it compatible with popular time management strategies like the Pomodoro Technique and timeboxing.

For example, schedule four pomodoros - each composed of a 25-minute work segment and 5-minute break - to complete one of your big tasks. Allocate time boxes that give you the time you need to complete your smaller tasks.

This approach also minimizes task switching. Because your to-do list will carry fewer tasks to focus on, you’ll be less inclined to switch back and forth between them. Instead, you’ll focus on one task until you’ve completed it or you’re unable to take it further. This reduces switching costs, the loss in productivity that results from jumping between unrelated tasks.

I’d maintain a master list of every to-do item that comes to mind. I’d make certain each item was specific in scope and attached to a goal. I’d assign deadlines and add contextual details. Each evening, I’d pick my three large tasks and two small tasks for the following day.

#5 - The 1-3-5 Rule

The “1-3-5 rule” is an extrapolation of the “3+2 strategy” described in the previous section. Here, you choose one big task, three medium-sized tasks, and five small tasks to complete during the day.

suppose you have a task you know will require 45 minutes to complete. With the “3+2 strategy,” it falls outside the definition of a big task (one that takes between one and two hours). It also falls outside the definition of a small task (one that takes 30 minutes or less). The “1-3-5 rule” offers a place for such items.

the “1-3-5 rule” suffers from the same imperfections as the “3+2 strategy.” First, no mention is made of giving context to the to-do items. Second, no mention is made of a master list from which the nine daily tasks are chosen. And third, this approach doesn’t allow for the use of a batch task list.

The “1-3-5 rule” can be an effective to-do list system with a few modifications. But there is an even better approach, which I’ll show you later in this action guide.

#6 - The Project-Based System

This system entails categorizing your to-do items based on the projects with which they’re associated. In the end, you’re left with multiple lists, one per project.

You’d create a separate list for a different project you’d like to complete, such as buying a new car. This list might have the following tasks:

Another advantage of this system is that it gives you a bird’s-eye view of your multiple projects in progress. You can select tasks to work on depending on which project you want to move forward.

One of the drawbacks to a project-based system is that it offers very little structure with regard to how you spend your day. Rather than working from a single to-do list that has been created to maximize your productivity, you pick and choose tasks from multiple lists. This feature creates too much variability. There are too many options, which opens the door to task switching and its attendant costs.

Another flaw is the limited context given...

You probably also noticed the absence of a batch task list.

#7 - The 3-MIT Approach

MIT is an acronym. It stands for “most important task.” It’s the highest-priority item on your to-do list. It’s the one thing you must complete during the course of a given day.

you select three high-priority tasks to focus on during your day. Whatever else happens, you must get these three items done.

how do you choose your three MITs? Do you link them to specific goals and give them context accordingly? Do you estimate in advance how much time each one

will take to complete so you can avoid overextending yourself given your schedule and availability? How do you integrate your MITs with your calendar to ensure they receive the time and attention they need? How do you make certain small, but important tasks get done in a timely fashion?

If you struggle with procrastination, are regularly waylaid by distractions, and suffer a lack of motivation, an open-ended task management strategy isn’t a good solution. A structured system with well-defined rules and less latitude is likely to be more useful.

The Kanban method is a more visual approach to task management than the systems we’ve covered thus far. It’s a great to-do list strategy if you enjoy seeing your projects and tasks in various stages of completion. Here’s how it works: Grab a cork board and a stack of Post-It notes. Make three columns on your board. Title the left column “To Do.” Title the middle column “Doing.” Title the right column “Done.”

First, it provides a visual representation of your projects and tasks. This makes it easy to identify high-value items that need your immediate attention. It also makes it easy to prioritize items according to their respective due dates. Second, the Kanban method allows you to track the progress of individual tasks. You can tell at a glance whether a task is yet to be started, is currently under way, or has been completed.